Green Health Docs Blog

A new bill was recently introduced in Maryland’s legislature that would prohibit employers from discriminating against legal medical cannabis users. Today, employers in Maryland can terminate you for testing positive for cannabis, even if you have a medical certification to use the plant and are enrolled in the state’s program.

Dr. Amin discusses the deadly impact of the opioid epidemic on the TKO show with Kara Ro. She discusses how cannabis has improved the lives of so many with chronic pain. Dr. Amin is a huge cannabis advocate and educates the nation about the safe use of this plant. She believes it can help combat and eventually eliminate the opioid problem the states are currently facing.

According to the CDC an average of 115 Americans die every day from an opioid overdose. Those numbers are only increasing in the states every day as more Americans are addicted to Opioids. Luckily, 29 states have approved cannabis for medicinal use. Cannabis has proven to be extremely effective for chronic and severe pain. Many physicians are now optimistic about crushing the opioid epidemic with the use of cannabis. Green Health Docs owner Dr. Shivani Amin discusses with Dan Rivers the use of cannabis for chronic pain.

Many patients have questions about what to expect when they use cannabis for the first time. Some are fearful of becoming too high, and this makes them anxious to try their new medicine. Those of you who have already experienced the many benefits of cannabis may think this is a silly fear, but you’d be surprised how many people share this concern. Here are a few things you can do if you ever find yourself in a similar situation with cannabis.

Cannabis is an unusual medication in many ways compared to typical pharmaceuticals. For one, there’s no known way to fatally overdose on it, which makes it relatively very safe. When you see your physician, they usually aren’t going to prescribe a specific dose. Unlike a typical pharmacy, every dispensary will carry different products with varying percentages of THC and CBD. Trying to get a consistent dose like with pharmaceutical medications can be a challenge.

No matter how complicated it may seem, it’s important to at least try to be consistent. Not only is it cost effective to use as little medicine as needed, it also helps avoid building up tolerance to the medication – eventually requiring higher and higher doses. Furthermore, cannabis can have a biphasic effect where at lower doses it can have one effect, but it provides the opposite at higher doses. For example, some people may find a low dose of sativa provides energy and focus, but at too high of a dose, it can make you feel lethargic.

Many people in Maryland own firearms for proper reasons such as hobby, sport or protection. However, law-abiding gun owners who register to be cannabis patients are considered criminals in the eyes of the federal government.

The Gun Control Act of 1968 prevents cannabis users from purchasing firearms, since it restricts sales to anyone who “is an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance.” As long as THC is seen as a Schedule I controlled substance, gun-owners need to take precautions and make sure they understand the law.

For those of you that think that cannabis isn’t medicine, I’d like to discuss the many benefits of cannabis. Studies and research have proven time and time again of the medicinal effects of cannabis. Here is a closer look at how cannabis effects the different systems in our bodies.

I think it’s time for us to finally dispel some of that bad information we hear from people every day. In this day and age where information is readily available at our fingertips, I find it a little amusing that people still hold on to the lies that they’ve been told rather than doing the research themselves. This is my attempt at educating people about cannabis by separating the myths from facts.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a huge issue that many veterans in our country face today. The Veterans Affairs (VA) hospital offers many different treatment options for this condition, including support groups, but they are still missing a key piece of the puzzle.

Even though medical cannabis has been proven to help with PTSD, it is still federally illegal, so the VA systems and their doctors are unable to offer medical cannabis as a treatment option for veterans. Despite this fact, many of them have found alternative doctors to help with their symptoms.

Here at Green Health Docs, one of our biggest goals is to provide our patients with pain relief. Many individuals we see are hoping to one day replace their opioids/pain medication entirely, or at least cut back on their usage. Because of the current opioid epidemic in America, we are especially passionate about cannabis’s effectiveness in reducing opioid use.

Unfortunately, many healthcare providers and agencies have their hands tied when it comes to recommending cannabis to help combat this epidemic. Federal and state governments acknowledge the opioid problem, yet cannabis is still seen as a Schedule I drug. Nonetheless, the word is finally getting out about this safer, and oftentimes more effective, pain relief tool.